Supermarket checkstand with bagging system

ABSTRACT

A check-out counter having a cabinet with a bag storage well therein capable of storing a plurality of folded bags. The storage well is usually open on one side and closed on all of the remaining sides. An elongated trough is provided on the cabinet and one end communicates with the open side of the storage well and extends laterally therefrom. Means are provided for retaining the folded bags in the storage well but permitting passage thereof one at a time through the open side of the well as desired by an operator so that such operator may simultaneously open and transfer a bag from the storage well to the one end of the trough. A bag filled by the operator may then be moved manually or mechanically from the end of the trough laterally along the trough to make room for another of the bags to be transferred from the storage well to the one end of the trough.

[ *Sept. 2, 1975 SUPERMARKET CHECKSTAND WITH BAGGING SYSTEM 21 Appl.No.: 435,085

Related U.S. Application Data Continuation of Ser. No. 166,562, July 27,1971, Pat. No. 3,840,092, which is a continuation of Ser. No. 809,578,March 24, 1969, abandoned.

U.S. Cl. 186/1 AC; 53/384 Int. Cl E04h 53/384 Field of Search 186/1 A, 1AC; 53/384,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 6/1969 Shofi'ner 186/1 AC2/1971 Graveley 53/189 Primary ExaminerRobert .ll. Spar AssistantExaminerGeorge F. Abraham Attorney, Agent, or FirmW0odhams, Blanchardand Flynn [5 7 ABSTRACT A check-out counter having a cabinet with a bagstorage well therein capable of storing a plurality of folded bags. Thestorage well is usually open on one side and closed on all of theremaining sides. An elongated trough is provided on the cabinet and oneend communicates with the open side of the storage well and extendslaterally therefrom. Means are provided for retaining the folded bags inthe storage Well but permitting passage thereof one at a time throughthe open side of the well as desired by an operator so that suchoperator may simultaneously open and transfer a bag from the storagewell to the one end of the trough. A bag filled by the operator may thenbe moved manually or mechanically from the end of the trough laterallyalong the trough to make room for another of the bags to be transferredfrom the storage well to the one end of the trough.

8 Claims, 18 Drawing Figures PATENTEU sEP 21975 3, 9 02 570 sum 2 0f 51PATENTED 2191s SHEET 3 f1 PATENTED SEP 2197s VII"I IA SUPERMARKETCHECKSTAND WITH BAGGING SYSTEM This application is a continuation ofcopending application Ser. No. 166,562, filed July 27, 1971, now US.Pat. No. 3,840,092, which application in turn is a continuation ofapplication Ser. No. 809,578, filed Mar. 24, I969, now abandoned.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a check-out counterand, more particularly, relates to a check-out counter having a bagstorage well therein capable of storing a plu rality of folded bags andhaving means thereon for dispensing the bags one at a time from thestorage well into an elongated trough communicating with the storae welland extending laterally therefrom for hold ing open bags filled withmerchandise.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION it has long been recognized in the operationof retail establishments of the supermarket type that an importantfactor of profitable operation is the easy and rapid flow of bothmerchandise and customers therethrough. Accordingly, great efforts havein the past been made, and are still being made, to promote such easeand rapidity of flow. Much of the equipment supplied for such retailestablishments and, in fact, much of the design of such establishmentsthemselves have been directed toward this end. However, a seriousbottleneck has continued to exist at the check-out stand and this hasbeen the source of frequent and often irritating delays for thecustomer. Accordingly, equipment which will tend to speed the flow ofcustomers and merchandise past the checkstands will be advantageous.

Most of the equipment which has thus far been designed to speed the flowof customers and merchandise past the checkstands has involved the useof apparatus for aiding the customer in removing the merchandise fromthe shopping cart. This apparatus has taken many forms but in allthereof special cart and/or counter constructions are required which areexpensive and not always fully satisfactory. Further, in presentsystems, with or without means for speeding the unloading of the carts,the cashier must often have an assistant to help with the bagging of themerchandise. If such assistant is not available, the cashier will thenwith nearly every customer have to discontinue the checking of themerchandise and proceed to the area of the checkstand wherein thebagging of merchandise is to take place. In such instances, the speedingof the unloading process is to no avail and the customers waiting in thecheckout line and still irritated. Further, this necessity for thecashier to move to the bagging station will in many cases require thatshe moves a substantial distance from the cash register and check-outarea, thus creating possibilities for pilfering from the cash registeror for shoplifting of the small articles which are often adjacent thecash register. Accordingly, it will be advantageous to provide equipmentwhich will tend to reduce the need for a cashier to have an assistantfor bagging the merchandise and which will, even when the cashier isrequired to bag, both speed the procress and minimize the distance shemust move from the cash register.

A still further problem arising from check-out counters as presentlydesigned is that the goods, following checking by the cashier, areusually spread out on a single surface at the end of the checkoutcounter at a point beyond the cashier. This is true regardless ofwhether the cashier or an assistant does the bagging. Because of theerratic manner in which groceries are necessarily pushed into this areaby the cashier, it has been found that-even with a large such area, suchas 12-16 square feet, it is seldom that sufficient groceries to fillmore than three or four bags can be received thereon. Thus, for acustomer who has a very large order and if the cashier is also doing thebagging, it is often necessary for the cashier to stop checking partwaythrough the checking operation to bag the groceries which are thenoccupying the bagging area and then only after such bagging is finishedis she able to return to the checking operation.

Thus, it is desirable to provide a system by which the groceries,inasmush as they must be handled once by the cashier anyway in thechecking process, can be placed directly into suitable bags and thusavoid a second handling. Further, the relatively large bagging spacerequired in present designs of check-out counters are wasteful ofexpensive store floor space and, hence, it would be advantageous toprovide, if possible, means for carrying out the bagging operation whichwill handle a larger number of bags of groceries than is presentlyconvenient and yet do so in an actually smaller space than is nowrequired.

Accordingly, the objects of this invention are:

1. To provide'apparatus for use in retail establishments of thesupermarket type which will tend to increase the speed and theconvenience of flow of both customers and merchandise therethrough.

2. To provide apparatus, as aforesaid, which will permit the continueduse of shopping carts already in existence in the retail establishmentsof the supermarket type and will not require the need for specialshopping cart designs in order to cooperate with the checkstand systemembodying the invention.

3. To provide apparatus which will permit the cashier to unload ashopping cart, and, therefore, permit the customer to watch the cashiercheck the merchandise in order to double check against errors in thechecking process.

4. To provide apparatus which will permit the cashier to unload theshopping cart and simultaneously bag the merchandise to therebyminimize, and in some cases eliminate, the necessity of the cashierhaving a colleague to assist in the bagging of merchandise, therebyreducing the overhead of the retail establishments.

5. To provide apparatus which will permit the cashier 'to effect, or atleast assist in, the bagging operation without leaving the cash registerarea and without turning her attention materially'from it.

6. To provide apparatus, as aforesaid, which can be added to presentcheckstand designs at only a moderate additional cost.

7. To provide apparatus, as aforesaid, which will eliminate thepresently common double handling of merchandise from the checker to abagging platform and then from the bagging platform to a carrying bagfor the customer but instead, will enable the cashier or checker toplace the merchandise directly into bags by a single handling thereof.

8. To provide apparatus, as aforesaid, which by placing the merchandisedirectly into bags rather than temporarily accumulating same in thepresently conventional bagging area will enable the checkstand to bemade so as to occupy less floor space than is nowconventional while atthe same time enabling the checkstand to receive at a single time alarger amount of merchandise than is presently feasible.

9. To reduce the risk of damage to merchandise which presently existswhen same is pushed at random into the presently conventional baggingarea.

10. To provide equipment, as aforesaid, which can be utilized witheither presently conventional carts or carts equipped for automaticunloading thereof.

Other objects and purposes of this invention will become apparent topersons acquainted with checkstand apparatus of this general type uponreading the following specification and inspecting the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a top view of the checkstand embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is an end elevational view of the checkstand;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line III-III of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line IVIv of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line V -V of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the embodimentillustrated in FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along the line VII VII of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along the line VIII VIII of FIG. 3;

FIGS. 9-12 schematically illustrate the manner in which a folded bag istransferred from the bag storage well to the trough wherein merchandisecan be placed into the bags;

FIG. 13 is a sectional view taken along line XIII-X- III of FIG. 7;

FIG. 14 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 13 but showing amodification;

FIG. is a fragmentary sectional view of a modified embodiment of thecheckstand;

FIG. 16 is a sectional view taken along the line XVI- -XVI of FIG. 9;

FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a modified check stand; and

FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the modified checkstand of FIG. 17illustrating the manner in which the checkstand is to be used inconjunction with a shopping cart.

Certain terminology will be used in the following description forconvenience in reference only and will not be limiting. The words up,down, right and left will designate directions in the drawings to whichreference is made. The words in and out will refer to directions towardand away from, respectively, the geometric center of the device anddesignated parts thereof. Said terminology will include the words abovespecifically mentioned, derivatives thereof and words of similar import.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The objects and purposes of the invention,including those set forth hereinabove, are met by providing a check-outcounter having a cabinet with a bag storage well therein capable ofstoring a plurality of folded bags therein. The storage well is open onone side and is preferably closed on all of the remaining sides. Anelongated horizontal trough is provided on the cabinet along the sidethereof toward the cashier and communicates with the open side of thestorage well and extends laterally therefromv Means are provided forretaining the folded bags in the storage well but permitting a passagethereof one at a time through the open side of the storage well asdetermined by an operator, usually the cashier so that such operator maysimultaneously open and transfer a bag from the storage well to thetrough by the operators introduction of one arm into the bag engagingthe retaining means and manipulating same to cause the bag botttom tounfold. Thus, the operator can thereafter directly place articles intothe open bag and after the bag is filled, the operator can move the bagalong the trough to permit another of the bags to be transferred fromthe storage well into the trough.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring first to the embodiment of FIGS. 1-16 toillustrate one preferred embodiment of the invention, the checkstandsystem 10 comprises a pair of spacedapart counters 11 and 12. The system10 is the subject of my prior application Ser. No. 831,368, filed June9, 1969, now US Pat. No. 3,577,907 and reference is to be had theretofor the details of the system. This invention relates to the counter 11.

The counter 11 has sidewalls 13 and 14 and end walls 16 and 17. Asidewall 18 adjacent the end wall 17 is offset from the sidewall 14 anda wall section 19 interconnects the sidewall 14 to the sidewall 18. Inthis particular embodiment, the sidewall 18 and the wall section 19 areat right angles to each other to define an L-shaped zone referred tohereinafter as a shopping cart unloading zone 21.

An L-shaped guide rail 22 for guiding a shopping cart 23 into theshopping cart unloading zone 21 comprises a leg 24 which is generallyparallel to the wall 18 and is bent around as at 26 so that the endthereof abuts against the end wall 17. A leg 27 of the guide rail 22 issecured to the other end of the leg 24 and extends generally parallelwith the wall 19 and is bent around as at 28 so that the end thereofabuts against the wall 14. In this particular embodiment, the leg 24 isspaced from the wall 18 by spacers 29 and the leg 27 is spaced from thewall 19 by spacers 31. The spacers 29 and 31 also serve to secure thelegs 24 and 27, respectively, of the guide rails 22 to the counter 11.

A guide rail 32 comprises a straight bar 39 generally parallel with theend wall 16 and is bent around as at 33 so that the end thereof abutsagainst the sidewall 14. The guide rail 32 is also bent around as at 34so that it abuts against and is flush with the sidewall 13. The guiderail 32 is spaced from the end wall 16 by spacers 36. The spacers 36also serve to secure the guide rail 32 to the counter 11.

The foregoing described structure of the counter 11 is mounted on andsecured to a base member 37 (FIG. 3) supported in an elevated positionabove the floor by a plurality of legs 38.

An intermediate platform 41 is secured along one edge to the sidewall 13and is secured adjacent the longitudinal ends thereof to the end wall 16and wall sec tion 19. The intermediate platform 41 is positionedintermediate the base 37 and the upper edge of the sidewall 13. A troughplatform 42 is secured to the right edge of the intermediate platform 41and is secured to and extends between the end wall 16 and the wallsection 19. In this particular embodiment, the trough platform 42 isinclined to the vertical and extends down wardly away from the rightedge of the intermediate platform 41.

The sidewall 14 comprises a wall section 43 secured to the upper surfaceof the platform 42 intermediate the longitudinal edges thereof andextends between and is secured to the end wall 16 and the wall section19. In this particular embodiment, the wall section 43 extendsperpendicularly upwardly from the platform 42 to a height approximatelyequal to the height of the wall section 19 and the sidewall 16 to definea trough 44 having a width approximately equal to but preferablyslightly greater than the normal width of a desired size of papergrocery bag (such as a No 50 bag which is approximately 6 /2 to 7 incheswide) into which merchandise is to be placed. The purpose for thisconstruction will become more apparent hereinbelow. If desired, afurther wall section 46 can also be secured to the rightwardmostlongitudinal edge of the platform 42, and can extend between and besecured to the end wall 16 and the wall section 19. The spacing betweenthe wall sections 43 and 46 is chosen to accommodate the storage ofsmaller sized paper grocery bags.

A wall section 47 (FIG. 5) is secured to the longitudinal edge of theintermediate platform 41 and extends upwardly therefrom parallel to thewall section 43. A pair of wall sections 48 and 49 (FIG. 4) are securedto the upper surface of the intermediate platform 41 and extend betweenthe sidewall 13 and the wall section 47 to define an enclosure 53. Ifdesired, a cover 51 (FIG. 5) may be secured as at 52, hingedly or fixed,to the upper edge of the sidewall 13. Thus, if said cover is hinged,same may be used for storage of extra bags or other materials asdesired.

The sidewall 13, the wall section 49 and wall section 19 define athree-sided enclosure 55 having a bottom wall defined by theintermediate platform 41. The fourth side is open as at 63 and providescommunication from the enclosure 55 into the trough 44. Means areprovided for constantly urging mechanically or by gravity, 55 bags fromwithin said enclosure 55 out through said opening 63. In thisembodiment, such means comprise a curved piece of sheet metal 54 (FIGS.3 and 6) which is secured to the rightwardmost longitudinal edge of theintermediate platform 41, extends upwardly to the left therefrom and issecured to the sidewall 13 as at 56 adjacent the upper edge thereof. Inthis particular embodiment, a cover 57 is hingedly secured as at 58 tothe upper edge of the sidewall 13. A finger 59 is secured to theunderside of the cover 57 adjacent the rightwardmost edge thereof (FIGS.3 and 6) and depends downwardly therefrom toward the sheet metal base54. The finger 59 serves to keep the upper edges of a plurality of paperbags 61 within the enclosure 55.

A plurality of aligned buttons 62 are secured to the opposed surfaces ofthe wall section 19 and wall section 49 adjacent the opening 63 andproject outwardly into the opening 63. The buttons 62 serve to hold thelateral edges of the leading paper bag 61 (FIGS. 7 and 8) to preventsame from moving resistance free into the trough 44. A cylindrical bar64 is generally vertically alinged with the buttons 62 and is secured toand extends between the wall sections 19 and 49 adjacent the lowerportion of the opening 63 and serves to retain the lower edge of theleading paper bag 61 within the enclosure 55.

As illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8, a paper bag 61 comprises sidewalls 66and 67 joined together along the longitudinal edges thereof by bellowsfolds 68 and 69. The buttom wall 71 is folded so that it is generallyparallel with the sidewalls 66 and 67 and overlaps same. A recess 74(FIG. 8) is provided in the upper edge of the sidewall 66. The bag 61 isopen at the top as at 73 in FIG. 7.

If desired, an adjustable paper bag engaging clip 72 (FIGS. 6 and 7) canbe provided which is secured to the upper edge of the wall 19 and servesto grip the be]- lows fold 69 after the bag is opened to the dotted lineposition in FIG. 7 to hold the bag in the opened position. The clip 72comprises a U-shaped element 86 (FIG. 13) secured to the wall section 19by a screw 87.

FIG. 14 illustrates another embodiment of the clip 72 and will bereferred by the same reference numbers used to describe the clip 72 butwith the suffix A added thereto. In this embodiment, the screw 87A isloosened so that the U-shaped element 86 is movable between a raisedposition illustrated in dotted lines in FIG. 14 and the lowered positionshown in solid lines.

OPERATION The operation of the device embodying the device.

will be described in detail hereinbelow for a better understanding ofthe invention.

As indicated above, the counter 11 embodying the invention is for use inself-service stores which have shopping carts supported on wheels foruse by customers in a accumulating merchandise from different parts ofthe store and for transportation of the selected merchandise to thecheckstand system 10 for checking by the cashier C. Assuming that aselection of merchandise has been completed, the customer will thenproceed to the check-out area and position the shopping cart 23 into theshopping cart unloading zone 21 between the counters ll and 12. This isaccomplished by pushing the front of "the cart F into the zone 21 untilit engages the leg 27 of the guide rail 22.

The opening 73 into the folded bag 61 is caused by the finger 59 passingthrough the recess 74 in the upper edge of the wall 66 and engaging thewall 67. This holds the wall 67 in a supported position and permits thewall 66 to sag as illustrated in FIG. 7. The buttons 62 serve to holdthe longitudinal edges of the bag is the enclosure 53. The cashier Cprior to a starting of a checking operation, can insert a hand throughthe opening 73 (FIG. 7) and into a folded bag 61, thence, by applying arightward pressure (FIG. 9) on the wall 66, can pull the wall 66 of thebag 61 in a rightward direction so that the bottom wall 71 is pulledoutwardly from the lower set of buttons 62 and becomes generally alignedwith the platform 42 in the trough 44.

At the completion of the bag opening process as illustrated in FIG. 9,the cashier C can then remove her arm and, if desired, slip the upperedge of the bellows fold 69 under the clip 72 so that the bag is left inan opened condition as illustrated in FIG. 10 ready for the reception ofmerchandise as illustrated in FIGS. 11 and 12. The first merchandiseplaced into the bag will cause the bottom wall of the bag to be pulledcompletely over the top of the cylindrical bar 64 so that it will besuspended by a fictional engagement with the finger 59. As moremerchandise is placed into the bag as illustrated in FIG. 12, the weightof the merchandise in the bag will be sufficient to overcome thefrictional engagement betweeen the bag and the finger 59 to cause sameto settle down onto the platform 42. In so moving downwardly from theFIG. 10 to the FIG. 12 position, the bag moves downwardly away from thefinger 59 and the clip 72 and is thereby enabled to move sidewardly whensame is filled and the cashier is ready so to do. The cashier will haveto lift the clip 72A (FIG. 14) up to the dotted line position to freethe bag 61 from the grip thereof before moving the bag sidewardly.

After a bag has been filled, it may be moved by the cashier C from theposition 61 (FIG. 1) to one of many positions such as positions 61 and61 in the trough 44. Thus, a plurality of bags can be held in the trough44 and the cashier can check the merchandise simultaneously with abagging thereof to thereby minimize, or eliminate, the need for anassistant to effect the bagging of the checked merchandise.

An open platform 50 may be provided at the discharge end of the channel44, if desired, for the further reception of filled bags. Said platform50 is here provided by extending the wall 43 and intermediate platform41 beyond the wall section 48. Bags when filled may be moved by thecashier onto the platform 50 for picking up by the customer at herconvenience while the cashier proceeds to serve the next customer.Further, by providing a generally L-shaped zone for reception of filledbags, namely, the trough 44 and the platform 50, there can be readilyprovided reasonably within the reach of the cashier space for thereception of six to eight filled bags in a check-out counter ofreasonable size. Thus, the cashier can fill such a number of bagswithout leaving her station at the cash register and this number of bagsis ample to empty entirely a grocery cart of any ordinary size. Thisprovides a distinct advantage over conventional check-out counterswherein merchandise is held on a single level beyond the cashiersstation in that even the largest of these will not ordinarily hold moremerchandise than is required to fill about four bags. Where a customerhas more than such quantity of merchandise, the cashier is, inconventional apparatus, required to interrupt the checking operation tofill bags and then subsequently to resume the checking operationcontributing both to customer irritation and potential inaccuracy. Inthe present system, this interruption and consequent possible customerirritation and inaccuracy is eliminated.

The check-out counter is, as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, preferablyprovided with a barrier or stop 45 fixed thereto and disposed so as toproject transversely partially across the trough adjacent the dischargeend thereof for preventing the filled bags from being accidentallyslidably displaced off of the end of the trough.

MODIFIED CONSTRUCTIONS FIGS. l516 A fragmentary illustration of amodified checkout counter 11A is illustrated in FIGS. and 16. Parts ofthe counter 11A are identical to the counter construction 11 illustratedin FIGS. 1-11 so that the parts of the modified construction 11A will bereferred to by the same reference numerals designating correspondingparts of the counter construction 11 but with the suffix A addedthereto.

In this particular embodiment, a slot 76 is provided in the platform 42and extends longitudinally the full length of the trough 44A. A bracket77 is secured to the underside of the platform 42 and overlaps the slot76. A carriage 78 is movably supported on the bracket 76 for movementlongitudinally of the trough 44A. In this particular embodiment, thecarriage 78 comprises a plurality of wheels 79 which engage the bracketto guide same therealong. A flange 81 is provided on one end of thecarriage 78 and extends upwardly therefrom through the slot 76. A plate82 is secured to the flange 81 by a plurality of screws. 83. The plate82 extends generally parallel with the wall 19A and is movablelongitudinally of the trough 44A with the carriage 78. If desired, ahandle 84 may be secured to the upper edge of the plate 82 for assistingthe cashier c in moving the plate 82 longitudinally of the trough 44A.Thus, after a bag has become filled with merchandise, the cashier C maygrasp the handle 84 and move same leftwardly (FIG. 16) so that thefilled with merchandise will slide on the platform 42A to one of thepositions 61" or 61 illustrated in FIG. 1. The carriage is then returnedto the position shown ready to receive another bag for filling. Afteranother bag has become filled, the cashier by grasping the handle 84 canslide the newly filled bag leftwardly until it engages the previouslyfilled bag. Then, with a little more pressure, the cashier can then moveboth bags leftwardly so that they occupy positions, for example, thoseillustrated by reference numerals 61" and 61" in FIG. 1.

FIGS. 17-18 A further modified check-out counter 11B is illustrated inFIGS. 17 and 18. The modified check-out counter 11B comprises the usualsidewalls and a top wall 86 which provide the support for a cashregister CR. A trough 44B is provided in the top wall 86 and extendslongitudinally of the check-out counter 1 18 away from the cash registerCR. An opening 638 provides communication between the trough 44B and athreesided enclosure which defines the area for storing and dispensingpaper bags which are to be filled with mer chandise. The three-sidedenclosure, while not illustrated in detail in FIGS. 17 and 18, ispreferably identical to the three-sided enclosure 55 illustrated inFIGS. 3 and 6, for example, and no further detailing is required.

If desired, a further counter may be attached to the end of thecheck-out counter 1 lB'adj acent the cash register CR. This furthercounter 85 may support any piece of additional equipment required forchecking merchandise, such as a scale S for weighing produce and thelike. A guide rail 88 is secured to the stand 85 adjacent the upper andthereof. In this particular embodiment, the side 89 of the stand 85 anda wall 91 of the check-out counter 11B define a cart unloading zone 218into which a cart containing merchandise is to be placed.

If desired, a removable trough cover 92 having a length and widthpreferably equal to the length and width of the trough 44B in thecheck-out counter 11B may be provided for covering the trough 44B whenan assistant to the cashier C'is provided for bagging the checkedmerchandise. Guide pins 93 and cleats 94 are provided on the removabletrough cover 92. The guide pins 93 are received into guide pin holes 96provided in the upper edge of the trough 44B and the cleats 94 arereceived into receptacles (not shown) for securing the cover 92 to thecheck-out counter 11B and for making the top of the cover flush with thetop surface 86 on the check-out counter.

In operation, FIG. 18 illustrates the manner in which the modifiedcheck-out counter 11B is to be utilized. The cashier C can, from asingle work station, remove the merchandise from the shopping cart 23and simultaneously therewith place the merchandise into paper bags ofthe type illustrated at the end of the trough 44B spaced from the cashregister CR. This particular embodiment permits the cashier C to havecomplete control over all portions of the shopping cart including therear end portion of the basket. Thus, it is not necessary that thecashier have to reach long distances in order to reach the merchandiseat locations in the basket of the shopping cart which are spaced anappreciable distance from the single work station. Thus, the cashier Ccan work more efficiently to speed the flow of merchandise and customersthrough the check-out portion of the market place.

At the completion of the checking process, the cashier can remove theshopping cart 23 to the position illustrated in dotted lines in FIG. 18at which point the cashier can then place the bagged merchandise intothe shopping cart to assist the customer in removing the merchandisefrom the store.

Although particular preferred embodiments of the invention have beendisclosed above for illustrative purposes, it will be understood thatvariations or modifications thereof are fully contemplated.

The embodiment of the invention in which an exclusive property orprivilege is claimed are defined as follows:

l. A bagging check-out counter, comprising: an elongated cabinet adaptedto be supported on a support surface, such as a floor, said cabinethaving plural substantially vertical side walls and an elongatedsubstantially horizontal uniplanar top fixed to said side walls; wallmeans fixed to said cabinet along one side thereof and extendingsubstantially the full length of said top and defining an elongatedupwardly opening trough for permitting bags containing articles to bemanually slidably supported therein for movement from a positionadjacent one end of said top to a position adjacent the other endthereof;

said wall means including a smooth and substantially planar bottom wallpositioned approximately midway between said floor and said top andbeing displaced sidewardly relative to said top;

said wall means also including a side bag guiding wall fixed relative tosaid bottom wall adjacent the outer edge thereof and projecting upwardlytherefrom in substantially perpendicular relationship thereto, saidguiding wall having the upper free edge thereof spaced sidewardly asubstantial distance from the adjacent edge of said top for definingtherebetween said upwardly opening trough, whereby a bag is disposedwithin said trough is slidably supported by said bottom wall and saidside guiding wall; and

said cabinet also including means defining a bag storage well forpermitting storage of a plurality of closed bags, said storage wellbeing defined within said cabinet beneath said top, said lastmentionedmeans also defining a substantially vertically oriented opening definedbetween said top and said bottom wall for providing direct communicationfrom said trough into said storage well.

2. A check-out counter according to claim 1, wherein said top has alength less than the length of said cabinet with said other end of saidtop terminating at a location which is spaced a substantial distancefrom the adjacent end of said cabinet; and

said cabinet further including a substantially horizontal and planar bagsupport platform extending between said other end of said top and saidadjacent end of said cabinet, said bag support platform being positionedat an elevation closely adjacent the elevation of said bottom wall, theupper surface of said support platform and the upper surface of saidbottom wall being joined to one another whereby said platform and saidtrough are in open communication with one another and define a substantially L-shaped bag storage zone, said platform extending laterallyacross the width of said cabinet from said trough to the other said ofsaid cabinet.

3. A check-out counter according to claim 2, wherein said horizontalsupport platform has a width, as measured in the elongated direction ofthe cabinet, which is substantially greater than the width of saidtrough for enabling rectangular open bags as supported on said trough tobe slidably moved in their longitudinal direction along the longitudinaldirection of said trough from one end of said top to the other endthereof, with said bags then being slidably moved transversely acrossthe width of said cabinet from said trough onto said horizontal bagsupport platform.

4. A check-out counter according to claim 1, wherein said cabinetincludes first barrier means for at least partially closing one end ofsaid trough as disposed adjacent said one end of said top, and secondbarrier means for at least partially closing the other end of saidtrough for preventing bags from being accidentally slidably displacedalong the length of said trough to an extent sufficient to cause saidbags to accidentally fall off of said trough, said first and secondbarrier means each projecting transversely relative to the elongateddirection of said trough for controlling the displacement of bags alongsaid trough.

5. A check-out counter according to claim 4, further including meansdefining a cash register support disposed adjacent said one end of saidtop.

6. A check-out counter according to claim 1, wherein the means definingthe bag storage well include bottom support wall which slopes downwardlyfrom the other side of said cabinet towards said one side thereof forcausing the bags to be urged toward said opening.

7. A checkout counter according to claim 6, wherein said bottom supportwall is jointed to the bottom wall of said trough, said bottom supportwall being inclined upwardly away from said trough for causing automaticmovement of bags within said. well toward said opening for permittingsaid bags to be moved directly into said trough.

8. A check-out counter according to claim 1, wherein said wall meansincludes means associated therewith for maintaining a bag in an opensubstantially stable upright position for preventing tipping of the bagand for permitting slidable displacement of the bag longitudinally alongthe length of the trough in a direction substantially parallel with thelongitudinal direction of the bag to prevent the twisting of the bag asit is slidably displaced.

1. A bagging check-out counter, comprising: an elongated cabinet adaptedto be supported on a support surface, such as a floor, said cabinethaving plural substantially vertical side walls and an elongatedsubstantially horizontal uniplanar top fixed to said side walls; wallmeans fixed to said cabinet along one side thereof and extendingsubstantially the full length of said top and defining an elongatedupwardly opening trough for permitting bags containing articles to bemanually slidably supported therein for movement from a positionadjacent one end of said top to a position adjacent the other endthereof; said wall means including a smooth and substantially planarbottom wall positioned approximately midway between said floor and saidtop and being displaced sidewardly relative to said top; said wall meansalso including a side bag guiding wall fixed relative to said bottomwall adjacent the outer edge thereof and projecting upwardly therefromin substantially perpendicular relationship thereto, said guiding wallhaving the upper free edge thereof spaced sidewardly a substantialdistance from the adjacent edge of said top for defining therebetweensaid upwardly opening trough, whereby a bag is disposed within saidtrough is slidably supported by said bottom wall and said side guidingwall; and said cabinet also including means defining a bag storage wellfor permitting storage of a plurality of closed bags, said storage wellbeing defined within said cabinet beneath said top, said lastmentionedmeans also defining a substantially vertically oriented opening definedbetween said top and said bottom wall for providing direct communicationfrom said trough into said storage well.
 2. A check-out counteraccording to claim 1, wherein said top has a length less than the lengthof said cabinet with said other end of said top terminating at alocation which is spaced a substantial distance from the adjacent end ofsaid cabinet; and said cabinet further including a substantiallyhorizontal and planar bag support platform extending between said otherend of said top and said adjacent end of said cabinet, said bag supportplatform being positioned at an elevation closely adjacent the elevationof said bottom wall, the upper surface of said support platform and theupper surface of said bottom wall being joined to one another wherebysaid platform and said trough are in open communication with one anotherand define a substantially L-shaped bag storage zone, said platformextending laterally across the width of said cabinet from said trough tothe other said of said cabinet.
 3. A check-out counter according toclaim 2, wherein said horizontal support platform has a width, asmeasured in the elongated direction of the cabinet, which issubstantially greater than the width of said trough for enablingrectangular open bags as supported on said trough to be slidably movedin their longitudinal direction along the longitudinal direction of saidtrough from one end of said top to the other end thereof, with said bagsthen being slidably moved transversely across the width of said cabinetfrom said trough onto said horizontal bag support platform.
 4. Acheck-out counter according to claim 1, wherein said cabinet includesfirst barrier means for at least partially closing one end of saidtrough as disposed adjacent said one end of said top, and second barriermeans for at least partially closing the other end of said trough forpreventing bags from being accidentally slidably displaced along thelength of said trough to an extent sufficient to cause said bags toaccidentally fall off of said trough, said first and second barriermeans each projecting transversely relative to the elongated directionof said trough for controlling the displacement of bags along saidtrough.
 5. A check-out counter according to claim 4, further includingmeans defining a cash register support disposed adjacent said one end ofsaid top.
 6. A check-out counter according to claim 1, wherein the meansdefining the bag storage well include bottom support wall which slopesdownwardly from the other side of said cabinet towards said one sidethereof for causing the bags to be urged toward said opening.
 7. Acheck-out counter according to claim 6, wherein said bottom support wallis jointed to the bottom wall of said trough, said bottom support wallbeing inclined upwardly away from said trough for causing automaticmovement of bags within said well toward said opening for permittingsaid bags to be moved directly into said trough.
 8. A check-out counteraccording to claim 1, wherein said wall means includes means associatedtherewith for maintaining a bag in an open substantially stable uprightposition for preventing tipping of the bag and for permitting slidabledisplacement of the bag longitudinally along the length of the trough ina direction substantially parallel with the longitudinal direction ofthe bag to prevent the twisting of the bag as it is slidably displaced.